Grayson alleges that she was wrongfully terminated. She also contends that Blackburn repeatedly asked her for “sexual favors in return for employment protection and support.”

Blackburn vehemently denied the allegations when told about them Thursday. A DISD spokesman said he wasn’t aware of the lawsuit. Typically, the district does not comment on pending litigation.

Grayson was fired in July following a scathing report by DISD’s internal audit department that concluded she took part in deception during her tenure, lied about her criminal history and bullied an employee. The May 26 report says that she "engaged in a pattern of deceptive and dishonest practices" from the time she joined DISD in January 2014.

Grayson failed to report on her DISD application that she served 12 months’ probation in 1990 for misdemeanor criminal trespassing in Georgia. She has said that she didn’t believe her incident applied to the questions on the application about criminal history.

She also contends in the lawsuit that trustee Bernadette Nutall harassed and bullied her. A district investigation could not substantiate the allegations against Nutall.

Blackburn is running for re-election in May and faces two challengers.

The lawsuit alleges that Grayson, who is black, was discriminated against by the district because of her race. She also believes that she was retaliated against for reporting an environment that was hostile to her based on race and/or sex by denying her advancement.

The suit contends that Grayson has had trouble finding employment at the executive level because of inaccurate information about her by the news media. It also states that she suffered mental anguish and emotional distress and considered suicide.

She seeks damages for “back pay, front pay, past and future pecuniary losses, emotional pain and suffering, inconvenience, loss of enjoyment of life and other nonpecuniary losses.” She also wants all court costs and attorneys’ fees paid.